Leslie Parsons currently serves as the Assistant Chief, managing the Investigative Services Bureau (ISB). His position is one of five Executive Command Staff positions that are responsible for the implementation of goals and objectives set by the Chief of Police and Mayor of the District of Columbia.
Assistant Chief Parsons first began his law enforcement career with the Metropolitan Police Department in 1999 as a recruit. Since then, he has been assigned to several police districts and has held numerous investigative positions. Assistant Chief Parsons’ first assignment after graduating the Metropolitan Police Academy was as a patrol officer in the Third District. When the patrol service area boundaries were realigned, he was transferred to the Fifth District in order to maintain the same geographical area of patrol. In 2005, he became a crime scene search officer in the Crime Scene Investigations Division, where he collected evidence including DNA and latent prints, and documented crime scenes with written reports and photographs.
In December 2005, Parsons was promoted to the rank of sergeant. He returned to the Fifth District as a patrol supervisor. In April 2008, he returned to the Crime Scene Investigations Division (CSID). At CSID, Parsons supervised both Crime Scene Search and Mobile Crime Technicians, reviewing case jackets for accuracy and completion, and coordinating investigative efforts with detectives, among other duties.
Parsons was promoted to lieutenant in 2014 and assigned to the Seventh District. Later that year, Assistant Chief Parsons was transferred to the Narcotics and Special Investigations Division where he served as the commanding officer of the Gun Recovery Unit (GRU). During his time at GRU, he managed the day-to-day operations of the unit, worked on strategic briefings, and coordinated investigations with federal agencies. In 2016, Parsons was promoted to captain and assigned to the Criminal Investigations Division where he managed detectives conducting district level investigations. He also served as a 2016 Summer Crime Prevention Initiative Area leader in the Sixth District. That same year, Leslie Parsons was promoted to commander of the Criminal Investigations Division where he oversaw investigative units such as the homicide unit, sexual assault unit, and the district detective units.
In January 2021, Parsons was named assistant chief in charge of the Investigative Services Bureau at the Metropolitan Police Department. He was appointed to this position by Chief Robert J. Contee III.